Vulgar Display of Power

I love metal, but Pantera has never really been my cup of tea. I would say I like them, generally, but I rarely seek them out, and I have my reasons. I don't really like their production style, I don't really like Phil Anselmo's voice, or lyrics all the much. Hell, I just don't really like Phil Anselmo. But I do think Pantera deserves their place in the pantheon of metal acts. And it's really just for one reason. The riffs. Holy shit, Dimebag Darrell could write riffs.His technical abilities are obviously there, but there's such an understanding of restraint and raw power in his writing that most guitarists never really figure out. Look at Walk. The main riff for walk is literally a single note, which is bent. And it's one of the most iconic metal riffs ever. Look at the sheer weight of This Love's Breakdowns, or look at By Demons Be Driven's jackhammer riff. Listen to the staircase riff on A New Level. I don't even know if this is my favorite Pantera album for riffs (it might be Far Beyond Driven, but there are *absurdly* good riffs on every Pantera album from Cowboys on), but the library of riffs here is an absolute master class in riff construction. On this factor alone, Vulgar Display Of Power utterly soars. Not like one of my favorite metal albums or anything, but one which isn't being removed from the pantheon anytime soon.

Pointless for me to go beyond track one.

Thinking about it, my pant era was probably from the age of two to 12. Since then it's only been boxers.

Listening to this album is a lot like getting punched repeatedly in the head, although maybe less enjoyable.
Pummelling, repetitive (read boring) drop-D riffs, double kickdrums along with lots of screaming and piss-poor lyrics does not make for a fun almost-hour. I now know why these guys passed me by in the early 90s.

Just meh

This is an album that meant so much to me in my youth, a truly heavy album. I remember the lyrics for ‘walk’ were on one of the loading screens for my friend’s copy of ‘Goal’ on the Amiga(?), so strangely i also associate this with weaving past defenders as Roberto Baggio.

The first half of this album is so impactful. The sheer aggression of tracks like ‘New Level’, ‘Mouth for War’ and of course ‘Fucking Hodtile’ are just a joy. ‘This Love’ presents some light and shade switching from the anger displayed elsewhere to something more akin to the sound if bands like Alice in Chains or even Soundgarden. Just as that has eased you into complacency’Rise’ arrives to remind you just how fast they can hit.
There is no denying that ‘Walk’ is the standout track here, showcasing the strengths of the individual members from Vinnie’s pounding drums to Dimebag’s soaring riffs, this is still a song i revisit frequently to let off steam.

I enjoy the heaviness of the instrumental, especially the tone on the rhythm guitars. Not a particularly fan of the vocals as it's just not my thing really (it always feels like you're heaving singers destroy their vocal chords in real time) and, as always, I could do without the noodling solos. High point for me was probably Walk.

I would normally read the lyrics while listening to a 1001 Album, but I had the distinct feeling that would cause me to downgrade the score, so I've gone on pure reaction.

And it's fine.

3/5

I’m not an angry angsty teenage boy so this album doesn’t really have anything to say to me

First of all, let me focus on the music and forget about the nazi salutes, racist statements, and guitars with confederate flags. Otherwise, this will get 1 star.

Now, musically speaking, I really enjoyed the album. I love early Metallica albums (I think "Kill'em All" is their best album), so it's no surprise that I also liked this groove metal album.

It is between 4 and 5 stars for me. I enjoyed most of the songs: "Mouth for War", "A New Level" (great guitar intro), "Walk" (there's a good reason why this is one of their classics), "Fucking Hostile" (love the energy), "This Love", "Live In A Hole" (nice groove), or "Sorrow".

So, again, really in the 4,5 star range. Probably not enough to reach 5 stars so, at least for now, 4 stars.

I wanted to like this, but for "groove metal" the riffs were not very sticky nor chugging. The lyrics of the songs were equal parts thought-provoking and stupid overgenreralizable dribble. 2.4/5 -> 2/5

I know this is a groove metal classic, but those riffs are a lot to sit through. Pantera are impressively tight, yet the constant hammering wears me down instead of firing me up. The guitars certainly make an impression — unfortunately, it’s mostly a headache.

By the end, the title feels less like a boast and more like a warning.

I took migraine medication a few hours before listening to this - not in preparation, I genuinely had a headache - and maybe it helped. It would be a stretch to say I enjoyed it but it didn't feel like a power drill to the head, which is what I feared going in.

I’m plenty familiar with the singles from this record, thanks to modern rock radio in the 90s and early 00s… the album tracks feel a little more metal to me, or less polished. Or maybe they’re just less good?

Felt like a massive poser while listening but I enjoyed this despite that

Not for me

I kinda felt nothing, this album just happened and I listened to it. Didn't really have an response to it good or bad.

I don't hate metal per say. I just don't have a desire to turn it off when I listen to it, but I'm not a metalhead by any means. I like, in this album, that the riffs are explosive and heavy with a good beat behind them. I'm not really into shouted lyrics, however, and metal can get repetitive to me after a while (in the sense that it can melt into the background and not stand out). This was pretty good to me, though. I especially liked "This Love".

Aldri likt "Walk" og egentlig aldri vært nysgjerrig på Pantera. Syns det er mediocre metal som låter skrøpelig og heller gir meg lyst til å ta fram gamle Testament-plater igjen.

After Venom yesterday we have more Metal goodness.

Pantera are one of those bands that I very rarely take a notion to listen to but whenever I do I really enjoy them. While this was a fun listen, Walk is always a banger, it will probably be years before I take a notion to listen again.

Top Track - Walk

Fucking hostile

5.0/5.0: Iconic

i dont understand how someone cant groove to this